A Rock and a Hard Place (Episode)
A Rock and a Hard Place (岩と固体場所, Iwa to Kotai Basho) is the sixth episode of Mobile Suit Stardust Gundam. Summary The episode begins with a narration: the crew of the EUS-0098 Grissomm, now in the middle of Arian territory, has to figure out how to escape and get to North America. For the meantime, they're in a weak position as they see a large ABS-EF1001 Vulture-class arrive in the area. They also see the ABS-1002 Minor-class dock inside of it. Inside, Darius Ceylon and Amy Jagon are welcomed by John Ars Arias to Earth. They discuss what they'll do about the Grissomm, while John is in love with the idea of proving his worth to the rest of his family. Amy also requests that she be given a small transport, which John complies to. Meanwhile, the Grissomm readies for intense combat, while Walter Cotard and Doralus Reaver argue over sending out the MC2MS-13579 Stardust Gundam and forcing Sigro to go out after what he just went through. Mirai asks they should do now, and Doralus says that they'll take the most safe route for them. Elsewhere in the ship, Takumi and Kara Fumiko are telling Deva Kars to stay in her room for now as they run out, having to take gunner positions for now. However, they see Sigro running out to fight while Armen chases after him, asking him to return to the medical bay. He refuses as he manages to outrun the three. He gets on the Stardust, having barely been repaired since it was burned, and tries to get out of the ship to fight. Takumi manages to lock the front exit so Sigro's stuck in there. Suddenly, the Vulture fires upon the Grissomm, along with AFP-1003 Kaiser fighter jets as back up. The Grissomm tries to fight with its defenses, but the jets are too quick for the guns to keep up with. Doralus is given no choice as he orders for the Stardust to launch, forcing Takumi to open the launch bay, Sigro jumping out. Sigro is met with a hail of gunfire from the Kaisers, as John sees the new Union mobile suit. He decides to send down several AMS-1001 Aryan units to take it down. Darius and Amy, waiting for her transport, watch on while he realizes the mistake John is making. However, he doesn't bother to tell him because it'll make his and Amy's failed attempts seem more the Gundam's fault. Meanwhile, Sigro manages to deal with the massive amount of enemies, but he starts being pushed around by the immense power they have. Sigro eventually goes berserk on the Arian forces, slicing through them with little to no regard for his own safety. John sees this and quickly orders that his forces retreat from the area for now. He wants that "demon" of a mobile suit destroyed, but it's clear to him that his usual tactics won't work against the Stardust or the Grissomm. Later, when the Stardust is put back in the launch bay, Sigro walks back to his room, ignoring the praise of his friends. Once he gets there, he simply lies against the door, crying. In John's base, him and Darius talk about the Stardust, and Darius offers to help him in his operations against it. John is pleased that he has the Angel of Burkham on his side, and that this'll will impress his entire family. He thanks Darius for the help and says that he sees a good man in him. As John leaves Darius in his office, he just laughs off John's remark. Trivia